Scientific Quotes That Blur The Boundaries Between Mysticism and Science

In this article are quotes that seem to smear the line between mysticism and science. These are quotes from well respected scientists that seem to suggest what the mystics have been saying for thousands of years and makes you question the true nature of reality.

Max Planck

German theoretical physicist who originated quantum theory,which won him the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1918.

“…I regard consciousness as fundamental. I regard matter as derivative from consciousness. We cannot get behind consciousness. Everything that we talk about, everything that we regard as existing, postulates consciousness.” – The Observer, London, January 25, 1931

“Science cannot solve the ultimate mystery of nature. And that is because, in the last analysis, we ourselves are part of nature and therefore part of the mystery that we are trying to solve.”Where is Science Going? 1932

“As a man who has devoted his whole life to the most clear headed science, to the study of matter, I can tell you as a result of my research about atoms this much: There is no matter as such. All matter originates and exists only by virtue of a force which brings the particle of an atom to vibration and holds this most minute solar system of the atom together. We must assume behind this force the existence of a conscious and intelligent mind. This mind is the matrix of all matter.” – Das Wesen der Materie [The Nature of Matter], speech at Florence, Italy (1944)

David Bohm

American theoretical physicist who contributed innovative and unorthodox ideas to quantum theory, philosophy of mind, and neuropsychology. He is considered to be one of the most significant theoretical physicists of the 20th century.

“Deep down the consciousness of mankind is one. This is a virtual certainty because even in the vacuum matter is one; and if we don’t see this, it’s because we are blinding ourselves to it.” – Statement of 1986, as quoted in Towards a Theory of Transpersonal Decision-Making in Human-Systems (2007) by Joseph Riggio, p. 66

“Consciousness is much more of the implicate order than is matter . . . Yet at a deeper level [matter and consciousness] are actually inseparable and interwoven , just as in the computer game the player and the screen are united by participation.” – Statement of 1987, as quoted in Towards a Theory of Transpersonal Decision-Making in Human-Systems (2007) by Joseph Riggio, p. 66

“The notion that all these fragments are separately existent is evidently an illusion, and this illusion cannot do other than lead to endless conflict and confusion. Indeed, the attempt to live according to the notion that the fragments are really separate is, in essence, what has led to the growing series of extremely urgent crises that is confronting us today. Thus, as is now well known, this way of life has brought about pollution, destruction of the balance of nature, over-population, world-wide economic and political disorder and the creation of an overall environment that is neither physically nor mentally healthy for most of the people who live in it. Individually there has developed a widespread feeling of helplessness and despair, in the face of what seems to be an overwhelming mass of disparate social forces, going beyond the control and even the comprehension of the human beings who are caught up in it.” – Wholeness and the Implicate Order, 1980

Erwin Schrödinger

Austrian physicist, one of the founders of quantum theory, and winner of the 1933 Nobel Prize for Physics.

“Nirvana is a state of pure blissful knowledge… It has nothing to do with the individual. The ego or its separation is an illusion. Indeed in a certain sense two “I”‘s are identical namely when one disregards all special contents — their Karma. The goal of man is to preserve his Karma and to develop it further… when man dies his Karma lives and creates for itself another carrier.” – Writings of July 1918, quoted in A Life of Erwin Schrödinger (1994) by Walter Moore

Schrodinger (1961) claims that the Vedic slogan “All in One and One in All” was an idea that led him to the creation of quantum mechanics.

“Although I think that life may be the result of an accident, I do not think that of consciousness. Consciousness cannot be accounted for in physical terms. For consciousness is absolutely fundamental. It cannot be accounted for in terms of anything else.” – As quoted in The Observer (11 January 1931); also in Psychic Research (1931)

“Consciousness is never experienced in the plural, only in the singular. Not only has none of us ever experienced more than one consciousness, but there is also no trace of circumstantial evidence of this ever happening anywhere in the world. If I say that there cannot be more than one consciousness in the same mind, this seems a blunt tautology — we are quite unable to imagine the contrary…” – The Oneness of Mind, as translated in Quantum Questions: Mystical Writings of the World’s Great Physicists (1984) edited by Ken Wilber

“We do not belong to this material world that science constructs for us. We are not in it; we are outside. We are only spectators. The reason why we believe that we are in it, that we belong to the picture, is that our bodies are in the picture. Our bodies belong to it. Not only my own body, but those of my friends, also of my dog and cat and horse, and of all the other people and animals. And this is my only means of communicating with them.” –Nature and the Greeks, 1954

“This life of yours which you are living is not merely a piece of this entire existence, but in a certain sense the whole; only this whole is not so constituted that it can be surveyed in one single glance. This, as we know, is what the Brahmins express in that sacred, mystic formula which is yet really so simple and so clear; tat tvam asi, this is you. Or, again, in such words as “I am in the east and the west, I am above and below, I am this entire world.” – Mein Leben, meine Weltansicht [My Life, My Worldview or My View of the World] (1961)

“Vedanta teaches that consciousness is singular, all happenings are played out in one universal consciousness and there is no multiplicity of selves.” – Mein Leben, meine Weltansicht [My Life, My Worldview or My View of the World] (1961)

Hans-Peter Dürr

German physicist, executive Director of the Max Planck Institute for Physics and Astrophysics in Munich for several times.

You are 78 years old. Do you believe in for afterlife? Is there existence after death? Professor Dürr: “That is an interesting question. What we consider the here and now, this world, it is actually just the material level that is comprehensible. The beyond is an infinite reality that is much bigger. Which this world is rooted in. In this way, our lifes in this plane of existence are encompassed, surrounded, by the afterworld already. When planning I imagine that I have written my existence in this world on a sort of hard drive on the tangible (the brain), that I have also transferred this data onto the spiritual quantum field, then I could say that when I die, I do not lose this information, this conscioiusness. The body dies but the spiritual quantum field continues. In this way, I am immortal. “ – (P.M. Magazin 05/2007)

Freeman Dyson

English-born American theoretical physicist and mathematician, famous for his work in quantum electrodynamics, solid-state physics, astronomy and nuclear engineering.

“[Is mind] primary or an accidental consequence of something else? The prevailing view among biologists seems to be that the mind arose accidentally out of molecules of DNA or something. I find that very unlikely. It seems more reasonable to think that mind was a primary part of nature from the beginning and we are simply manifestations of it at the present stage of history. It’s not so much that mind has a life of its own but that mind is inherent in the way the universe is built.” – Interview with Freeman Dyson in U.S.News and World Report, April 18, 1988, 72.

“As we look out into the universe and identify the many accidents of physics and astronomy that have worked to our benefit, it almost seems as if the universe must in some sense have known that we were coming.” –The Argument from Design, in: Disturbing the Universe, Harper and Row New York 1979, p. 250

Roger Penrose

English mathematical physicist and Professor of Mathematics at the Mathematical Institute, University of Oxford, famous for his work in mathematical physics, cosmology, general relativity, and his musings on the nature of consciousness.

“…the contemporary understanding of material is very different now from the way it used to be. If we consider what matter really is, we now understand it as much more of a mathematical thing…But I think that matter itself is now much more of a mental substance…” – Journal of Consciousness Studies 1:24

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It’s interesting also to note that the only field of science that seems to spawn this type of reasoning are physicists, more specifically theoretical physicists. They all deal with physical phenomena at nanoscopic levels and probe into the fundamental make up of matter.

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I am watching Deepak Chopra on PBS now and his talk is about the Future of God. It was about consciousness for a great part.

Karl

This is really important stuff. Thank you super much for putting it together.

Imagining an omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent God, nothing God created could be outside of God. That all this is within God and we are all a part of God makes sense to me and is aligned with my own “whiffs of God”, if you will.

This site is great. I’ve been sharing it around. Even if you’ve gotten busy or discouraged, it’s still here, getting discovered by people and making a difference. Thanks.